Azariah horace hastings



(No Model.)

A. H. HASTINGS.

PIANO ACTION. No. 450,572. Patented Apr. 14,1891.

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NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

AZARIAH HORACE HASTINGS, OF NElV YORK, Y.

PIANO-ACTION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 450,572, dated April 14, 1891.

Application filed July 25, 1890. Serial No. 359,863. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, AZARIAH HORACE HAST- INGS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Piano-Actions, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in upright-piano actions, and has for its object the production of an action of peculiarly rapidrepeating properties which shall be easy of adjustment and nice regulation, simple in constrnction, and not liable to get out of order.

To this end my invention consists in the novel arrangement of the hammer-butt and hammer-check, jackescapen'ient, repeating and hammer springs, all as hereinafter more specifically described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating my invention, in which like parts are designated by similar letters of reference, Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in section; and Fig. 2 is a detached view of the repeating-spring.

B is the usual jack,workingon the ham merbutt A to throw the hammer forward and strike a string and has its lower end pivotally connected to the j ack-lever G,andis provided with the spiral spring a for maintaining the jack in the position shown. The escapement for the jack 13 consists in a light flexible piece D, attached to said jack or formed integral therewith, having its upper end cushioned to prevent noise when it strikes the shoulder b on the hammer-butt, and adjusted in the most effective position by the regulating-screw c, passing through the jack B and bearing upon the cushion of the piece D, before described.

Immediately above and curving over the top of the jack B is the repeating-spring E, which is rigidly secured to hammer-butt A in any suitable manner, but preferably by confining it in a recess in said hammer butt. This spring may be of the form illustrated in Fig. 2, and is cushioned, as shown, and provided at its outer extremity with a cushion or stop to check the outward motion of the jack 1 lVhen the jack 13 is operated to throw the hammer forward and strike a string, it is obvious that it will act against the tension of repeating-spring E, which the instant the performers finger leaves the key J throws the jack to its normal position, aided by the spiral spring a, thus permitting the same string to be again struck without raising the finger entirely from the key or waiting for the full action to take place,as in the present movements. To quicken the action of the hammer and hasten its return to its normal position, I employ the wire hammer-spring F, secured at one end to the hammer-rest rail I or tea special rail under the same. This arrangement of the hammer-spring is peculiarly effective and advantageous, for said spring, working on the hammer-butt at the side of the shank opposite to the face of thehammcr, pulls said hammer into its normal position, and, being at the rear of the hammer, interposes no obstacle to the free access to the flanges and does away with the ordinary rail and springs between the hammer shank and dampers, and havin its other end free to work in the recess (Z of the hammer-butt A. The hammer-butt A is provided with the downwardly-extending bumper G for checking the fall of the hammer, which in operation is engaged by the check ll, secured at one end to the jack-lever C by the spring orpivot center 6 as near the lever center of C as possible and having its outer end free to be adjusted by the regulating-screw f.

It will be noted that by my combination of devices the highest efficiencyis obtained with the least complication of parts and a mini mum of friction, by the position of the stops lost motion is avoided, and by the arrangement of the springs the action is rendered unusually rapid.

It will of course be understood that the parts illustrated in the drawings and not herein specifically described may be of ordinary construction and arrangement.

hat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The hammer-butt A and jack B, in combination with the repeating-spring E, having its center of movement in said hammer-butt, substantially as specified.

The hammer-butt A and jack B, the latter pivotally connected to the jack-lever C, in comlnnation with a spring for maintaining said jack in its normal position anda repeating-spring having its center of movement in the hammer-butt, substantially as specified.

3. The hammer-butt A and jack B, in combination with a spring for accelerating the re-' turn of the hammer to its normal position, secured at one end to the hammer-rest rail and having the other end free to operate in a recess in the hammer-butt at the side opposite the face of the'hammer, substantially as specified.

4. The hammer-butt A and jack B,in combination with aspring for accelerating the return of the hammer to its normal position, secured atone end to a special rail forthe purpose beneath the. hammer-rest rail and having its other end free to operate in arecess in the hammer-butt at the side opposite the face of the hammer, substantially as specified,

5. The combination, with the hammer-butt A and jack B, of the doWnWardly-projeoting bumper G and spring-check H, pivotally connected to the jack-IeverO-near the levercenter thereof, and means for regulating the position thereof, substantially as shown and described. I

6. In an upright-piano action, a hammerbutt having a downwardly-projecting bumper and a spring-stop for checking the movement of said hammer-butt, in combination with a jack for raising said hammer-butt, a light strip working with the jack for aiding its escapement, and a repeating-spring, all arranged to operate substantially as described, for the purposes set forth.

7. The combination of the hammer-butt A and jack B with the escapement device D, consisting of a flexible strip having its lower end fast to said jack and havingits upper end cushioned and free to be adjusted, and means for adjusting the same, substantially as specified.

Signed at New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 2d day of June, A. D. 1890.

AZARIAH HORACE HASTINGS.

Witnesses:

THORNE S. WA LING, EDWARD R. KNOWLES. 

